Devastation

The Rockaway boardwalk, October 31, 2012

"Woe is me! For I have become 

like one who,

after the summer fruit has been gathered,

after the vintage has been gleaned, 

finds no cluster to eat; 

there is no first-ripe fig for which I hunger.

The faithful have disappeared from the land, 

and there is no one left who is upright...."

                                              (Micah 7:1-2)

Such desolation of spirit doubtless only hints at what so many people in the Northeast are experiencing in the wake of the massive October 29 storm with its powerful surge. This force of nature not only devastated the flowing garland of towns that adorn the storied New Jersey shore, as well with boroughs of New York and other areas of New Jersey which faced the ocean, but it also plunged millions into darkness and hardship that may last for another week or more. Even after power is restored, many will suffer severe long-term physical and financial consequences. 

What was it like for those affected? In the comfort of our own homes we cannot know. But one hint emerged in the story of the Staten Island mother whose two small sons were swept from her arms as she tried to escape the rising waters. Can any of us possibly imagine what that was like? After they were torn from her that evening, utterly alone in the midst of the storm, she frantically tried to search for them. Where and how did she look? What sliver of hope did she cling to? With the area evacuated there was no one to help or to turn to. She finally ended up spending the night on the front porch of an empty house and was only able to flag down a rescue team the next morning. What could that long night possibly have been like for her? She may not have known these verses of Micah but they may capture a shadow of what her experience that night was, and surely continues to be.

We have all been through times of trial, possibly not of this magnitude but enough for us to feel that forces of despair over which we have no control are closing in. In those times, all we can do is to read on in Micah. 

But as for me, I will look to the Lord,

I will wait for the God of my salvation;

my God will hear me. 

                                            (Micah 7:7)